Episode 157 Insider’s Inbox

AI Search, Zero-Click Results, and What They Mean for Website Owners

Search is changing faster than ever, and website owners need to keep up. In this podcast episode, Meredith’s husband breaks down two key developments shaping the future of SEO: how AI search tools gather their information, and the growing impact of zero-click searches.

A recent study revealed that ChatGPT may be pulling information directly from Google, even though OpenAI claims it uses Bing as its source. In the test, a page was indexed only on Google and blocked from Bing. Within hours, that page appeared in ChatGPT search results. This suggests that Google’s index is playing a larger role in AI-generated results than many realize.

The second topic, zero-click search, is even more important for website owners.

Increasingly, users are finding what they need directly in search results—whether from Google’s AI overviews or traditional featured snippets—without ever clicking through to the original website. That means fewer page visits, even for sites that are ranking well.

At first glance, this seems discouraging. Fewer visits usually mean fewer leads. But the data tells a different story. One study from Ahrefs found that traffic arriving from AI-powered results converted 23 times higher than traditional organic visitors. That means while the volume of traffic may decline, the quality of leads can skyrocket.

For website owners—especially small business owners like photographers—this shift means one thing: ranking at the top of Google is more important than ever. AI tools overwhelmingly pull their results from top-ranking sites, and if your business isn’t visible there, it won’t show up in AI-generated lists either.

Meredith’s husband explains that while some AI results include content from sites outside the top Google positions, the percentage is small (about 8.6%). In practice, your best chance of appearing in AI search is still tied directly to your position in Google.

What this means for you:

• Expect fewer site visits, even when rankings are strong.

• Prioritize conversion optimization to make the most of higher-quality leads.

• Stay focused on achieving top Google rankings, since that visibility translates directly to AI search exposure.

SEO isn’t going away—it’s evolving. Understanding zero-click searches and the way AI sources content will help website owners position themselves for success in this new era.